Yoga in the Kitchen…….
I read an article from a favorite yoga teacher of mine months ago on this topic, I responded with connection and delight. He asked me about my “yoga on the kitchen”. So as my first official blog post I am writing about my “yoga in the kitchen”……hoping to maybe inspiring yours as well!
Food was not always my friend ….can you relate? I grew up with family meals and with an awareness of the demon “sugar”. My dad was a holistic chiropractor….a rare breed in the 60s. We had no junk food and sugar in our home. Well that is till he died in 1966 (accident…not health ‘sugar’ related). Welcome sugar….canned macaroni and cheese and well….home cooked meals…greens??? I don’t think so!!! So the food roller coaster began…and I struggled for years and years not understanding the connection between my intake of food and my fluctuating mood and energy swings. I could not concentrate in school…was labeled a slow learner….”shut up”…..and my life continued to ebb and flow with instability. Yes I know my life experience did play a role in this…however…would it have been different if my food was different. YOU BET! But the contrast helps me write to you today.
Food is now my friend. I realize that everything I put into my body becomes part of me. So that I am actually “walking food”. And it is not just about “what goes in” but…..”how it is prepared”. Yes cooking is like yoga to me. It is a spiritual creative experience. I don’t always know what I’m doing…do you? But try anyway and experiment. So one of my experiments came out ok. The “Chia Pet Bean Burger”…..made a video on this ….will post it soon! I came up with this recipe when I was doing a “liver cleanse”…don’t ask! So no meat and dairy on this cleanse (duh)…but I am hypoglycemic so I need protein! Mmmmmmm….beans…rice…hemp seeds…. chia seeds…onions…garlic…..cilantro…..spices…walah a burger was born! I do my yoga in the kitchen….maybe this was power yoga that day….I prefer restore…makes better soup! I made a big batch….froze the leftovers and continued on my liver cleanse.
One of the quotes from the nutrition school I attended in NYC was…”cook like your life depended on it…because it does” I hated that quote when I was not cooking and preparing my food. But now I get it. So just begin….baby steps…..maybe make on thing today or tomorrow. Make a little extra so you can have more meals. Connect with the food…breathe…look at the food…feel it…it is quite miraculous some of these edible life healing morsels from Mother Earth. Feel gratitude and begin your own “yoga in the kitchen” …Namaste’ and Bon Appetite! ~Pati
